NYC rabbi says he mishandled school abuse claims

NEW YORK (AP) — The chancellor of a Jewish university in New York City says he was wrong in the way he handled allegations of sexual abuse at the university’s high school decades ago.

Rabbi Norman Lamm says in a letter announcing his retirement from Yeshiva University on Monday his response to the allegations was “ill-conceived.” Lamm is stepping down after decades at the university amid an ongoing investigation into accusations of abuse by alumni.

The university says Lamm’s decision to retire was based on an agreement reached three years ago.

Attorney Kevin Mulhearn says he represents 22 men who claim they were sexually and physically assaulted by administrators and teachers at Yeshiva University High School from 1971 to 1989.

Mulhearn says the plaintiffs came forward to report the abuse years ago but the school did nothing.